PepperBall Mobile Lightweight Personal Defense Launcher Kit, Non-Lethal Protection Pepper Ball for Self Defense Includes Projectiles and Cartridges

Read the entire review before making a decision about purchasing. Bottom line, a working device is awesome, if you don’t get a working device contact the manufacturer and they’ll make it right. Thank you.Initial review: It arrived quickly. I purchased this because I survived a potentially deadly incident and may still have an unknown threat. Followed instructions and watched unboxing videos. Then opened up and followed directions. It initially fired three practice rounds but after reloading three new inert balls it wouldn’t fire. I changed the CO2 and it fired one ball then quit. I changed CO2 again and the same thing. Did it one more time, and now it does nothing. Amazon lists it as a fire hazard and won’t take it back.On day two I found a phone number and contacted PepperBall Direct. I went over my troubleshooting steps with him and he said I did everything correctly and that the device likely has a broken piece inside and will need to be repaired. I stressed the urgency/exigency of my need, and that I bought this for self defense and didn’t want to carry my gun if possible. He told me normally the technicians will make contact with me within 24-48 hours, but given the severity he would mark my ticket as urgent (or somethi that nature). He said usually they will get to me right away. I gave him all of my sensitive details related to the situation.Update: it’s been over 24 hours and I’ve heard nothing yet. Having and extremely high potential threat, I need this now and I got nothing.Update: Approximately 32 hours after initial report I got an email from customer service basically asking me for all of the details about my device and purchase. I provided the requested information as soon as I saw the email.Update: Finally on July 9 I got a reply from the technician stating that a return service is needed with a email shipping label and other papers I had to print out. I immediately replied and informed them that I do not have a printer, and due to other issues that I made clear to them (but will not disclose here), can not go out and find one at this time. My reply didn’t go back to the technician because it came from a general email address for customer service. I then got another generic email from customer service that said “ When you send in the launcher , please place on the service form the information below that you would like it replaced.” I then found an email for the technician and sent the message to him as well. At this point I had attempted to tell them three times of my urgent need and impossibility of printing the forms. I borderline lost it. I researched the company and made contact with important members of the PepperBall team. I need it done now, not in a week. I could be (untold horror) in a week.Update: It was very frustrating but on the same day I received multiple apologies for key figures in the company to include the CEO. He has assured me that he’s going to make it right. I assured him that all I want is some personal protection, and a equitable outcome to this distasteful interaction. Attached are two of the emails I received and I am due to get my new device tomorrow. I will update once it arrives and is verified to function properly.Update: Since receiving the apology yesterday from the CEO, I got the new one in the mail today and it works and works well. While it has been a frustrating week, I really appreciated that the CEO and key figures cared, enough to engage me. Now that I got a working device I am really happy with it and feel confident that if needed it will be great.This seems like a great self defense option, especially with the Live X LEO grade PepperBalls. It packs a big punch and after shooting a post from 30-35’ away with a regular strength PepperBall, I walked up to it and immediately had some effects from the PepperBall. I am loading up with the LiveX ones that are 10x strength and feel confident in the device to provide me adequate protection.

I purchased this for my mother to keep around the house "just in case". She can safely (and legally) keep it nearby, no matter where she goes. It is light enough for her to transport and the flashlight is very useful. The firing mechanism is a little too stiff for her to easily use, but it does not make it unusable ... just not easy. That actually may be a feature rather than a bug.The only downside I have yet found is that the CO2 cartridges cannot be transported on an airliner. The launcher and pepperballs themselves may be packed in your checked baggage, but not the gas cylinders. If you are travelling with this, you will have to obtain 8 gram CO2 gas cartridges at your destination. I initially did not think this would be any problem ... just stop at any sporting goods store and get some of the type made for air rifles. However, those are 12 gram, not 8. If you are travelling anywhere by airliner, you must have the CO2 cylinders shipped to your destination.You need to purchase some practice rounds to shoot this enough to get a feel for how to hold it on target. It is not intuitive, but it gets easier with practice. The practice rounds filled with baby powder give you an idea of where the ball hits your target by leaving some residue behind and an idea of how far the active ingredients in the live rounds spread. If you wish to use solid, "reusable" rounds, you will have to obtain some type of a trap to capture them or they will bounce all over the place.Cost of shooting the practice rounds: We have been able to successfully shoot three strings of three rounds each with each CO2 charge - a total of 9 shots without changing the cylinder. Each practice ball costs approximately 90 cents and the CO2 cylinder can be obtained for as little as 50 cents each (the Leland cartridges work flawlessly), so the cost per shot is approximately 95 cents. The opened CO2 cartridge will keep pressure overnight, but we have not done any testing on how long it will stay pressurized after the first shot punctures the cylinder. The manufacturer says it will leak out within 24 hours.Cost of shooting the "Live" rounds: Each round costs approximately $4.50. The weight of each round should be the same as the practice rounds, so you should be able to obtain the same number of shots per gas cylinder. However, the gas cylinder should be changed each time the launcher is used, so the cost per round will be as much as $5.00 (shooting one round and replacing the CO2 cylinder) and as little as $4.55 (shooting 10 before replacing the cylinder).It is somewhat louder than I thought it would be. Not loud enough to bother the neighbors when fired in the back yard, but still a bit louder than I anticipated. Most cities do not have any rules regarding the shooting of paintball guns in the city limits, but be sure to check your local regulations.I believe this will be an invaluable tool that will provide peace of mind to anyone who needs something for self defense without the worry that you will be likely to take a human life. Or that a round will accidentally penetrate a wall and harm an innocent bystander. While it is listed as "non-lethal", there is always the possibility that a round may hit in just the right place or that the recipient may have some condition that would render them overly susceptible to injury. Treat it with the respect you would any firearm, use it in a manner that is safe, and use it only on a bad guy who truly deserves it.

Bought this for my wife, who travels across state lines.The first negative was that the C02 canisters would not pierce when inserted. You put a C02 canister in, and the first time you try to shoot, nothing happens. You find out that the canister did not pierce, even though it was screwed all the way in. I tried different brands of canisters, trying to give the product every opportunity to succeed. Same result--most canisters would not pierce the first time they were inserted.The second negative, which is the deal breaker, is that there is no indication of whether the canister, once successfully pierced, has any gas left in it. Sooo, you load the launcher and test fire it once, or a few times, to make sure it's working. Then, you don't use it until the need presents itself, which can be days or weeks later.When you pull the trigger, the canister is empty, so the launcher just clicks. You would have to be able to load and test fire the launcher before each time that you MIGHT need it, which is impossible.This makes the device unreliable and, therefore, useless for self-defense.